PRESS RELEASE: Report Shows Access to Justice Initiative Contributes to DC’s Safety & Stability

[District of Columbia, April 22, 2025] – The DC Bar Foundation announces the release of its Civil Legal Counsel Projects Program Biannual Progress Report.

The Civil Legal Counsel Projects Program (CLCPP) – one part of the District’s Access to Justice Initiative – is a grant program established by the Expanding Access to Justice Amendment Act enacted by the Council of the District of Columbia in July 2017. The DC Bar Foundation administers grants and, in 2024, made awards to seven legal services organizations in the District to provide legal assistance to DC residents with low income at risk of eviction or the loss of a housing subsidy or seeking to remedy housing conditions.

The latest evaluation report, mandated by the DC Council and produced in collaboration with NPC Research, covers the period from July 1 through December 31, 2024. Report highlights during this period include:

CLCPP contributed to the District’s safety and stability by helping 365 families remain housed. During the reporting period, CLCPP attorneys helped 365 clients retain possession of their homes. Of these 365 clients, 132 (36%) had minor children living in the home, and 128 (35%) reported having a household member living with a disability.

CLCPP serves a significant number of District residents. CLCPP partners served 1,854 tenants across 2,074 cases. Of these cases, 1,615 were closed after a CLCPP attorney provided legal services to the tenant. The remaining 459 cases featured tenants referred to a CLCPP partner, but legal services were not complete at the time of this report.

CLCPP serves clients reporting characteristics that would make them more vulnerable to the risk of unstable housing or homelessness. Of the 1,854 clients served in the current period, 37% had at least one minor child living in the household; 22% identified as having a disability or chronic health condition; and 41% resided in subsidized housing and were at risk of losing their housing subsidy.

CLCPP serves District residents in all eight Wards. Almost half (45%) of CLCPP clients lived in Ward 7 (18%) and Ward 8 (27%). An additional 16% lived in Ward 5, 11% in Ward 1, 10% in Ward 6, 8% in Ward 4, 5% in Ward 2, and 4% in Ward 3. The Ward was not known for 1% of clients.

You can read the full report here. 

About the DC Bar Foundation: We are committed to transforming DC’s legal aid network so all District residents have access to our local civil justice system without regard to knowledge, income, or power. Through our network approach, we actively bring together all invested stakeholders to identify and address the unmet civil legal needs of DC residents with low income, create solutions, and demonstrate meaningful impact.

###